There are so many different types of costume and vintage jewelry, whether it be pins and brooches or necklaces and rings. You want to know Which settings are most durable? Which jewelry clasps are best for securing and easiest to manipulate. How long is a choker necklace? What type of metal? A good understanding of jewelry terms and jewelry components makes it so much easier to buy the "right" jewelry when you shop. Today, We will focus this article on purchasing sterling silver jewelry.
Silver has been used to make jewelry since ancient times. Did you know the western hemisphere uncovered more productive silver mines than the European mines? More silver has been mined since the late 1700's than in all prior centuries combined. Now you ask, What is Silver? Silver is a soft metal in its pure form. It is much too soft to be used for jewelry and other items. So, one needs to mix the "pure" silver with other metals to make it more durable. A popular silver mixture, called an alloy, is known as sterling silver. Copper is the most common metal used to round out the 7.5 percent alloy balance in sterling silver.
Jewelry sold in the US cannot be marked or described as silver, solid silver or sterling silver, unless it contains at least 92.5 percent pure silver. If your not sure the piece you are buying is real, flip the piece over and search for the jewelers mark of 925 or 92.5. If no mark is seen, the piece is not silver!
Now you made the purchase of your silver piece, how do you keep it clean? The one complaint I hear most about sterling silver is that it tarnishes. Yes, it does. In time, silver tarnishes from the interaction of silver and sulfides in the air. The tarnish will take on a golden hue, and eventually, it will turn the piece black. This is a natural process. Higher sulfide levels are associated with humidity and/or air pollution. Keep in mind that the more humid the climate, the faster sterling will tarnish. Purchase an inexpensive Chemically treated soft cloth like a "Sunshine cloth" at your local jewelers, this will make the job a lot easier and faster. Sterling silver will polish up by rubbing or buffing. Just remember, the simplest way is usually the best way. It will make your piece look brand new again.
Checking with vendors' offerings and with the very knowledgeable salespeople at my work, I could find no particular "name" for a necklace like you described. Various styles of necklaces do incorporate a clasp as part of the decorative lower part but these are not what you are looking for. These are the "lariat" styles in which one end of the chain is longer than the other, fitting through the shorter end.
My suggestion for a front mounted clasp and pendant: Any competent jeweler should be able to modify a chain to do like you want. The catch to the clasp situation is having an attractive clasp arrangement so all works together to look nice on the neck. If looks are not important, then any sturdy clasp will work, such as a 'lobster claw' or a sturdy 'spring ring' clasp.
One alternative to the regular clasp styles is the folded metal wire 'hook style' clasp. The wire is bent into a loop so the open end is slightly against the other side, making for a neat friction fit where the pendant loop is slid into. An example of this style is on the following website. Scroll down and on the right side you will see 'NBd109 Aquamarine nugget' in a description. Look at the clasp. This is a simple folded wire hook arrangement.
Using this style of clasp, a pendant may be permanently attached to one end of the same style (with the hook soldered shut) and then the other side may be slid onto the pendant loop to fasten the chain together.
Using Spring Ring and Lobster Claw Clasps: These are the typical clasps used in necklaces. The lobster claw style is superior in strength.
For clasp like this to work properly, the pendant will need a loop going the correct direction. Imagine that the cross pendant is placed flat on a table surface. The loop on the pendant should lay flat also. In other words, the front view of the pendant will show the 'looking through the hole' view of the loop on the pendant.
One side of the chain is attached permanently to the loop (left flexible, of course, attached with another loop of metal) and the clasp will be attached to the loop. With the loop on the pendant facing as I described, all will hang properly. Obviously, if the loop on the pendant faces the other way, like it would to simply slip over a chain, the pendant will be pulled sideways when the clasp is attached.
As an alternative to changing the loop already on a pendant, an additional loop may be formed and soldered shut, going through the pendant loop. This will give the pendant more 'movement' when worn and will take care of the direction problems.
Ask a jeweler: As I said before, any jeweler competent enough to solder sterling silver should easily be able to take a chain of almost any style and modify it to have a 'front' closing clasp which on one way or the other attaches to the loop(or loops) of the pendant. The attractiveness of the overall piece will depend on the clasp used.
It is possible to use two clasps of a decorative style with one on each side of the pendant loop. The hook style clasps work quite well visually but are not as secure as spring loaded types like the lobster claw. Still, the hook style might be best for appearance sake. These solutions will keep the clasp and the pendant in front without the problem of 'roaming clasps' that wind up somewhere on the collar bone or so when worn.
Both Arthor Pens & Victor Epand are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.